Beltsville, MD –SARE Outreach announces a new planning resource for farmers seeking sound, science-based guidelines for managing crop rotations in organic farming. Crop Rotation on Organic Farms: A Planning Manual helps farmers avoid crop rotation problems and use rotations to build better soil; control pests, weeds and diseases; and develop profitable farms. Consulting with expert organic farmers, the authors share rotation strategies that can be applied under various field conditions and with a wide range of crops.
“The purpose of this book is to help growers and farm advisors use crop rotations to build better soil, control pests, and develop profitable farms that support satisfied families,” says editor Charles Mohler, a senior research associate at Cornell University.
Crop Rotation on Organic Farms is most applicable for the Northeast but will also be useful in other regions.
Published by the Natural Resource, Agriculture and Engineering Service (NRAES) and funded in part by SARE, the 154- page book includes instructions for making rotation planning maps and discusses the transition to organic farming. Other features include:
Problems and opportunities for more than 500 crop sequences
Characteristics of more than 60 crops and 70 weeds
Crop diseases hosted by more than 80 weed species
Modes of transmission for 250 diseases found in 24 crops
Thirteen sample four- and five-year vegetable and grain crop rotations
Step-by-step procedure for determining crop rotation plans
Download Crop Rotation on Organic Farms for free at http://sare.org/publications/croprotation.htm. To order print copies ($24.00 plus $5.95 s/h) visit www.sare.org/WebStore, call 301/374-9696 or send check or money order to SARE Outreach, PO Box 753, Waldorf, Maryland 20604-0753. (Please specify title requested when ordering by mail.) Discounts are available on orders of 10 or more. Allow 3-4 weeks for delivery. Call 301/374-9696 for more information on bulk, rush or international shipments.
Published by SARE Outreach for the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program and features work supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), USDA. SARE’s mission is to advance – to the whole of American agriculture – innovations that improve profitability, stewardship and quality of life by investing in groundbreaking research and education. SARE Outreach operates under cooperative agreements with the University of Maryland and the University of Vermont to develop and disseminate information about sustainable agriculture. For more information visit www.sare.org.
NRAES is the Natural Resource, Agriculture, and Engineering Service (formerly known as the Northeast Regional Agricultural Engineering Service). NRAES’ mission is to assist faculty and staff at member universities in increasing the public availability of science- and experience-based knowledge. We accomplish this mission by publishing practical books used in educational workshops, in college courses, as management guides, and for self-directed learning. For more information, visit http://www.nraes.org/.
